Nursing Student Suspended After Facebook Review
DENVER (CBS4)- A nursing student's career is in jeopardy after she was kicked out of school for posting a review of the program on social media.
Laura Dewey was two quarters in to the 18-month program at the Denver School of Nursing earning her Associate's Degree in Nursing (ADN) when she decided to post the review on the school's Facebook page.
Dewey provided a screenshot of the 1-star review that states, "If you choose this school DO NOT go through the ADN program. They 'break in' all the new teachers on us and give all the experienced teachers to the BSN's."
The private school offering accelerated degrees in nursing is located in the heart of LoDo on 19th and Market.
"This is my dream, my goal," Dewey said of her plans to become a nurse.
Her training, however, stopped short about 7-months into the program after she says she and some of her peers had experienced an ongoing problem.
"We were really frustrated," Dewey told CBS4's Melissa Garcia. "Six out of 14 people failed the fourth exam… A lot of the information was not in the book."
Dewey said that when the testing troubles were not resolved by students voicing their complaints directly to staff members following the chain of command, she took to the school's Facebook page hoping to trigger a change that way.
Writing how she felt, however, did not yield the response that she had hoped for.
The school sent Dewey a letter stating that her post was in violation of the student standards of conduct. The letter went on to say that she would receive failing grades for her current courses, and that she was immediately dismissed from the program.
"I couldn't believe it," Dewey said. "It was devastating."
A ledger shows payment for Dewey's education at the school so far totals over $22,000.
Dewey filed an appeal with school administrators, who later lowered her sanctions to suspension.
In order to resume her nursing instruction, however, she would need to wait until the next term beginning in October. Dewey said that the school is also requiring her to repeat 120 hours of clinical fieldwork that she has already completed and to pay an additional $7,000 for an extra quarter's work, should she choose to continue her studies there.
"I feel like it is way too severe of a punishment," Dewey said. "I have no choice but to finish at that school, or I just drop it completely and then start over somewhere else."
Dewey said she had no idea that her decision to express her opinion of her experience with the program in a public review would result in disciplinary action.
"Be careful what you post," Dewey added.
Cathy Maxwell, President at Denver School of Nursing, declined comment on the ordeal, citing the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), a federal law that protects the privacy of student education records.
Maxwell did say, however, that the school does its best to make sure that students do not suffer financial hardships as a result of disciplinary action.
Melissa Garcia has been reporting for CBS4 News since March 2014. Find her bio here, follow her on Twitter @MelissaGarciaTV, or send your story idea to mkgarcia@cbs.com.
